Big
Pocono Trail Ride - Camelback Mountain
off Camelback Road Tannersville, PA. 18372
One of the highest elevation rides in the Poconos.
Absolutely wonderful views of the Delaware Water
Gap, and across NJ to the southern tip of New
York State. (Look for the obelisk at High Point
Park to the North East.) Get information, maps
and supplies at "The Loft" on Camelback
Road on your way up. Make it a two day trip
and spend the second day relaxing your sore
muscles at Camelbeach Water Park in the
Kahuna Lagoon Wave Pool. The trails are numerous,
some isolated, single track and woods roads
and an old railroad bed. Take lots of water
on this ride! Be aware of the wild life - we've
seen bear, foxes, an abundance of dear and on
one occasion a real wild Bobcat.
If
you choose to ride in the Adjacent State Gamelands:
State Game Lands 38 contains 3,943 acres of
forest adjacent to Big Pocono State Park and
is undeveloped, with rocky, little-used roads
and an abandoned railroad grade. A boulder field
and kettle lakes are reminders of glacial history.
The glacier gouged out depressions, which filled
with melting ice. These lakes are fed by groundwater
alone and, on a geologic scale, are temporary
features. They will eventually fill with sediment
and become swamp and then forest. Interesting
features: Pennsylvania kettle lakes, boulder
field. Surface: Rough woods road, abandoned
railroad grade, power-line cut.
Personally
recommended by our PoconosBest.com Staff. Who
bikes here: All the Local and State Officials.
More on Big
Pocono Trails
Our
2 day 2 night Mountain Biking In Big
Pocono State Park $499 + Tax ($249.50
per person) for two people for 2 nights package
includes:
>
Overnight accommodations at The Chateau (a 3.5
to 4 Star hotel on the Mountain) for two. Breakfast
is available for a charge in the onsite restaurant.
>
Bike rental for 2 for One Day. 9 AM until 5
PM. (Use either day of your stay reserved in
advance.)
>
Map to Trail Entrance, Map of Trail, Guide to
Big Pocono State Park.
This
package is for the novice to intermediate biker.
A fun easy trip with some hills and single track
up and down the same path with views of the
river and mountains. Since you will be traveling
through the State Park the entire trip, you'll
not see any houses and very little evidence
of civilization. The land along the trip is
pretty much the way it was in the 1700s.
For bike rentals go to The Loft just 5 minutes
from where the trail begins. Camelback Road
Tannersville, PA 18372 Guided hikes in
the area are also available.
You
will stay at this Hotel "The
Chateau Resort"
You
may request an other more romantic Country Inn
during the reservation process and most of the
time we will be able to accommodate you. However
final selection of the inn is based upon availability.
It is possible that we may have to finalize
your reservation at an inn other than your preference.
Each inn has its unique ambienace and all are
inviting, clean and friendly.
$499
+ Tax ($249.50 per person) for two people for
2 nights
Big
Pocono State Park Bike Trails Map
Big Pocono State Game Lands 38 Biking Map
Biking: Bicycles are permitted on all hard surface
roads shared by vehicles. Mountain biking is
permitted on South Trail and North Trail Lower
Loop. Bikes are prohibited on the connecting
trails from the parking lots and on Indian and
North trails.
The
top of Camelback Mountain is a unique forest
called a scrub oak shrubland. Wind-dwarfed gray
birch, quaking aspen, red pine and scrub oak
cover the mountaintop, with no tree over twenty
feet tall. Lowbush blueberry, sweet fern and
mountain laurel grow under the short trees.
Down slope, the forest offers more shade with
mixed hardwoods including oak, maple, and hickory
trees.
Portions
of South Trail are lined with blueberry and
mountain laurel, which bloom in mid-June. On
the north side of the mountain, North Trail
Lower Loop Trail on the old railroad grade passes
through a rock cut and offers hikers a glimpse
of a hemlock and rhododendron glen, which is
surprisingly cool on hot summer days. Rhododendron
blooms in late July.
History:
Big Pocono State Park is on land which was owned
by Henry S. Cattell near the turn of the 20th
century. Mr. Cattell, being very fond of the
view from the summit of Camelback Mountain,
and knowing that many others shared his love
for the area, constructed a stone cabin on the
summit in 1908. The Cattell Cabin was left unlocked
for many years to be used as a shelter by anyone
who wished.
Since
1921, the Pennsylvania
Bureau of Forestry has maintained Big Pocono
Fire Tower on the mountain for the purpose of
detecting forest fires in the surrounding private
and state forest lands. The tower is staffed
only during the spring and fall seasons and
has been dedicated by the National Fire Tower
Association as a historical structure.
In
1928, 12 years after Mr. Cattell's death, the
Pennsylvania Game Commission purchased the area.
In 1950, a portion of the state land on the
steep north slope of the mountain was leased
to Big Pocono Skiing, Inc., for commercial ski
development. Later named Camelback Ski Corporation,
the facility has been developed into a major
ski resort.
In
1953, a 1,306-acre portion of the state game
lands, including the ski area lease, was acquired
by the Pennsylvania Department of Forests and
Waters (now the Department of Conservation and
Natural Resources) for the purpose of developing
a state park at the mountain's summit.
In
1954, after the construction of restrooms, parking
areas, picnic sites, fireplaces and a scenic
drive around the summit, the area was opened
to the public as Big Pocono State Park. The
Cattell Cabin (pictured below) served for many
years as a park office and nature museum
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